Keene City Council Wisdom

August 7, 2010 by Bradley Jardis
Filed under: Laugh at the Aggressors

The Keene City Council has a whole code of ordinances that it utilizes to govern authorize violence against its subjects. Whether it is prohibiting someone from peacefully drinking an alcoholic beverage on public property or making it illegal for its own employees to remove snow from the roadways in the winter… the Keene City Council carefully crafts its “master plan.”

Yes, you read me correctly. A Free Keene forum reader found an ordinance enacted by the Keene City Council making it illegal for anyone to plow snow off of its roadways in the winter. No exceptions are made for government employees and it looks like you can get slammed with a $1000 fine for doing it!

Sec. 82-67. Placement of snow and ice.

No person shall shovel, plow, put or place or cause to be shoveled, plowed, put or placed,within the traveled portion of any sidewalk, street, lane, alley, or highway, any snow or ice. However, snow and ice may be banked on the sides of public roadways incident to the cleaning thereof or banked on the sides of sidewalks incident to the cleaning thereof. The penalty for violation of this section shall be as provided in section 1-15 et seq.

Now that surely is a creative way for a municipal government entity to generate more revenue: hire people to plow the road in the winter and then fine them for doing it.

Jeff

The ordinance states that snow shall not be *put* into the roads (by various methods, including plowing), not *removed* from the roads.

This only states that you can't just plow the snow out of your driveway into the road where it would be dangerous.

This seems reasonable to me – what am I missing?
Bradley Jardis

What you are missing is that shovel, plow, put, or place are all elements.

You don't need to put it or place it to violate the statue. Putting it or placing it are only two of the four things you cannot do with snow or ice on a highway.
Bradley Jardis

It is a shittily worded ordinance. Clearly, what I'm saying isn't the intent of it…. it just happen to be how it is worded.
bil

I could put it there by driving my car through the snow that has been plowed . I could place it there with a dump truck. I think they are covering all bases to keep people from putting snow in the road. You are also not allowed to plow snow across the street. I suggest a little CD this weekend, we could all get some of those snow-cones from the fair, and place them in the street. When the cops show up, all that will be left is the water! Take that, you thugs! —bil
Bradley Jardis

When the cops show up, all that will be left is the water! Take that, you thugs! —bil

Hahahaha bil you had me laughing out loud with that one.

I'm afraid, my man, that you'll be going down for a felony: http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/rsa/html/LXII/641…
Jody

Proof that politicians don't read the rules/regulations/laws they pass. It would be interesting to find out if there is a place in North America that doesn't have a snow removal bylaw/ordinance.
KBCraig

Their defense will be, "But that's not what we meant!"

Of course not. But it's what you *wrote*. Not that it matters, since you feel free to make up your own rules where none even exist, or interpret rules to mean something else entirely.
Dennis

I think the ordinance refers to placing or putting, as such, meaning to cause an accident by having the snow in the road.

Not to worry, I know the freestaters have all the ambulance, tow trucks, police to make sure this won't happen.

You guys aren't capable of logical thought, are you?
wouter215

@bil snow-cones are not made of snow.
bil

No snow in snow-cones!! Next you will be saying there is no Easter bunny! As for the destruction of evidence ,blame the sun, see if they can subpeona it into keene Court! No snow….a lifetime of childhood belief, gone just like that! —bil
Bradley Jardis

It's okay bil… the ordinance also covers "ice" which I think a sno-cone technically qualifies as.
Curious

I believe shovel, plow, put, and place were all used for the benefit of those people out there who would argue "I didn't put or place it there. I shoveled or plowed it there". You should take note that you are still allowed to throw, kick, pile, sweep, push or dump it there! Do they really need to re-craft the ordinance to exclude any possible creatively rationalized reason for the snow from your driveway ending up as a hazard in the roadway. If we could all just follow the intent of the ordinance, instead of spending all of our time rationalizing ways around it, contract lawyers would have to find a new line of work.
Go away!

Bradley Jardis, you are a moron!